associate

American  

[uh-soh-shee-ayt, -see-, uh-soh-shee-it, -ayt, -see-] / əˈsoʊ ʃiˌeɪt, -si-, əˈsoʊ ʃi ɪt, -ˌeɪt, -si- /

verb (used with object)

• associates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• associated,
  past participle,  past
• associating
  present participle

1. to connect or bring into relation, as thought, feeling, memory, etc..

   Many people associate dark clouds with depression and gloom.

   Synonyms:

   relate, couple, connect

   Antonyms:

   distinguish

2. to join as a companion, partner, or ally.

   to associate oneself with a cause.

3. to unite; combine.

   coal associated with shale.

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verb (used without object)

• associates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• associated,
  past participle,  past
• associating
  present participle

1. to enter into union; unite.

2. to keep company, as a friend, companion, or ally.

   He was accused of associating with known criminals.

3. to join together as partners or colleagues.

noun

• associates
  plural

1. a person who shares actively in anything as a business, enterprise, or undertaking; partner; colleague; fellow worker.

   He consulted with his associates before proceeding further.

   Antonyms:

   adversary

2. a companion or comrade.

   my most intimate associates.

   Antonyms:

   adversary

3. a confederate; an accomplice or ally.

   criminal associates.

   Antonyms:

   adversary

4. anything usually accompanying or associated with another; an accompaniment or concomitant.

5. a person who is admitted to a subordinate degree of membership in an association or institution.

   an associate of the Royal Academy.

adjective

1. connected, joined, or related, especially as a companion or colleague; having equal or nearly equal responsibility.

   an associate partner.

2. having subordinate status; without full rights and privileges.

   an associate member.

3. allied; concomitant.

associate British  

verb

1. (tr) to link or connect in the mind or imagination

   to associate Christmas with fun

2. (intr) to keep company; mix socially

   to associate with writers

3. (intr) to form or join an association, group, etc

4. (tr; usually passive) to consider in conjunction; connect

   rainfall is associated with humidity

5. (tr) to bring (a person, esp oneself) into friendship, partnership, etc

6. (tr; often passive) to express agreement or allow oneself to be connected (with)

   Bertrand Russell was associated with the peace movement

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noun

1. a person joined with another or others in an enterprise, business, etc; partner; colleague

2. a companion or friend

3. something that usually accompanies another thing; concomitant

   hope is an associate to happiness

4. a person having a subordinate position in or admitted to only partial membership of an institution, association, etc

adjective

1. joined with another or others in an enterprise, business, etc; having equal or nearly equal status

   an associate director

2. having partial rights and privileges or subordinate status

   an associate member

3. accompanying; concomitant

Usage

What does associate mean? An associate is a person who shares in business as a partner, stakeholder, or colleague. To associate is to connect or relate multiple things together. The noun form of associate, pronounced uh-soh-shee-it, often refers to a business partner but can also be used more generally to describe a friend or even an acquaintance. Associate is also used to describe more sinister partnerships, such as an accomplice in a crime or a member of a gang or crime organization. The verb form, pronounced uh-soh-shee-eyt, can be used to mean to connect or unite people. When you associate yourself with someone else, you may be working with them, you may be friends or romantic partners, or you may even be a customer. People who are associated will often be discussed in a pair or group. Associate can also mean to connect or relate, as with objects and feelings or memories. For example, you may associate naan with your grandmother who used to make this bread whenever you visited. Or you may associate a favorite book with the memory of a teacher who introduced you to the book. Example: I always associate gingerbread with the holidays, but it’s good all year round.

Synonym Usage

See acquaintance.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• associateship
  noun
• associator
  noun
• superassociate
  noun
• reassociate
  verb
• associable
  adjective
• associatory
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• associates
  plural

Participles

• associating
  present
• associated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• associate
  simple
• associates
  simple
• have associated
  perfect
• has associated
  perfect
• am associating
  progressive
• are associating
  progressive
• is associating
  progressive
• have been associating
  perfect progressive
• has been associating
  perfect progressive

Past

• associated
  simple
• had associated
  perfect
• was associating
  progressive
• were associating
  progressive
• had been associating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will associate
  simple
• will have associated
  perfect
• will be associating
  progressive
• will have been associating
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of associate

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin associātus “joined to, united with” (past participle of associāre ), equivalent to as- as- + soci- ( see social) + -ātus -ate ¹; compare Anglo-French associer (verb), associé (noun)

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Explanation

As a verb, associate can mean to make a connection between things or concepts. You might associate the smell of lemons with summer memories of selling lemonade. Or, with polishing your furniture with Lemon Pledge. As a noun, in employment, an associate is someone who is in a junior position. You might hear about associates at law firms, hoping to make partner one day. However, some companies also use associate to mean any employee, regardless of rank or seniority. The noun associate can also mean a friend or someone you keep company with. And, as a verb, associate can also mean to keep company with — like when you were associating with activists at the protest march.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

associate associates associated associating

“It’s not about being nice or inclusive,” says Wei Cai, an associate professor at Columbia Business School and one of the study’s authors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

The University of Melbourne's associate head of psychological sciences, Lisa Phillips, said she was not surprised it was a female lawmaker who had been attacked.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026

"Single-cell analysis allowed us to examine this pathway in the different cells that maintain the brain's blood vessels," says co-first author Elanur Yilmaz, an associate research scientist in the Kizil lab.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 19, 2026

Aaron Garza, 56, a business associate of Salinas, has watched immigration raids hurt business and the community.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 2026

“What does it symbolize, what could it represent, or what do you associate it with? Could it be untangled or reorganized in some way to create another meaning or point in a direction?”

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin

Prigozhin summoned top Wagner and government officials to his Bangui hotel in April to plan how best to maintain the flow of gold to overseas markets, according to government officials and former Wagner associates.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026

The leaked documents show that before then, in January 2002, Abramovich's Russian associates had already prepared a bundle of documents.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

One of Roman Abramovich's closest associates misled a UK court to help secure ownership of Siberian oil fields, leaked documents seen by the BBC suggest.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

“But associates doing the work down here, it’s changing their daily routine quite a bit.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

There on the worn stones of the Quarter I enlisted the aid of this wilted flower of a human in gathering his associates in foppery together behind a banner of brotherhood.

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole

“We do not see anyone getting off of our mainframe platform, and therefore the associated mainframe software stack on top of it,” Kavanaugh said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

Their analysis found that substituting minimally processed foods for 10% of ultra-processed food intake by weight was associated with a 2% lower incidence of colorectal cancer.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 21, 2026

White is often associated with absence or emptiness—we speak of “a blank page.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

Every dietary pattern examined was associated with slower biological aging, as measured by chemical changes in DNA that reflect the body's aging process.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 21, 2026

If he’s ever associated with me, the assumption will be that he was created in a lab.

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste

Hoffman apologized in 2019 for associating with Epstein.

From Salon ● Sep. 21, 2026

Nikolic previously said “Epstein was a master manipulator, and I deeply regret associating with him.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026

Clinton's spokesperson has said the photos are decades old and Clinton had stopped associating with Epstein before his crimes came to light.

From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2026

Does he fear the risk posed by associating with him?

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026

Now I was terrified that he’d be driven away from associating with our family at all.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

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Related Words

• accomplice
• ally
• assistant
• buddy
• co-worker
• cohort
• collaborator
• companion
• comrade
• crony
• fellow
• friend
• partner

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